CINCINNATI >> The space between ‘Ball’ and ‘Park’ in the officially named Great American Ball Park is just making room for a baseball to pass through.

The most homer-happy stadium in the majors — yes, more so even than Coors Field — played it coy with the Dodgers for three days before letting them go 50 shades of deep Monday afternoon. The Dodgers hit seven home runs, including four in the fifth inning, for their biggest offensive output since 2006 in an 18-9 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

The Dodgers also had 14 hits that weren’t home runs, giving them a season-high 21 hits. The 18 runs were the most they have scored in a game since a 19-run frolic at Coors Field on Sept. 28, 2006.

The win sends the Dodgers into their crucial series with the San Francisco Giants, starting Tuesday at Dodger Stadium, leading the division by a full game.

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Monday’s barrage tied the record for the most home runs hit in a game at Great American Ball Park. The Dodgers are the first visiting team to do it. The Reds have done it three times since the stadium opened in 2003.

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The seven home runs and four in one inning were also the most by a Dodgers team since Sept. 18, 2006 — the game that featured four consecutive home runs in the bottom of the ninth inning by the Dodgers against the San Diego Padres.

“Doesn’t ring a bell,” joked Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who was the Padres’ left fielder that night. “Chavez Ravine. Marlon Anderson, Nomar (Garciaparra). Me in left field. I was in left field watching one go over my head, a couple to right center. Yeah, I remember.”

So does Adrian Gonzalez. He was the Padres’ first baseman that night.

“Who won?” Gonzalez joked. (The Dodgers won 11-10 when Garciaparra hit the seventh and final home run of the night in the 10th inning.)

Boarding started early for the frequent flights Monday. Gonzalez hit the first of his three home runs — a three-run shot — just four pitches into the game. He added a solo home run in the four-homer fifth and a another three-run shot in the seventh, part of a career-high eight-RBI day for him and his second multi-homer game on this trip.

After one of his home runs, the SportsNet LA cameras caught Gonzalez trotting back to the dugout with a wide smile, saying, “I love this ballpark.”

“I hit two fly balls for home runs today. It could easily have been a 1-for-6 game with five outs. It ends up being a pretty good day.”

Gonzalez has had a lot of those recently, including an ongoing 15-game hitting streak. Since being held out of the lineup for two days in late June, Gonzalez is hitting .355 with a 1.013 OPS, nine home runs and 37 RBIs in 46 games.

Andrew Toles and Rob Segedin hit back-to-back home runs during the fourth inning — each was the first home run of their major-league careers. It was the first time in franchise history players had hit their first major-league home runs in consecutive at-bats.

Corey Seager hit the other home run during the six-run fourth inning, going back-to-back with Gonzalez. It was his 22nd of the season, tying Glenn Wright’s franchise record for a shortstop (set in 1930 with the Brooklyn Dodgers) and one of his four hits in the game (matching his career-high).

Gonzalez and Yasmani Grandal hit back-to-back home runs in the seventh inning. It was the first time in Dodgers’ history they had three separate incidents of back-to-back home runs in the same game (excluding the four consecutive home runs on Sept. 18, 2006).

Even with all that offense, the Dodgers couldn’t get out of town without another issue in their starting rotation.

Starter Scott Kazmir couldn’t make it through three innings, retiring just eight of the 17 batters he faced.

Afterwards, Roberts and Kazmir revealed the left-ahnder has been “fighting through” neck and back issues that make it difficult for him to maintain his mechanics on the mound.

“Where he’s at right now, consistently trying to execute pitches obviously is tough for him. He’s out of rhythm,” Roberts said. “I think part of it is that neck issue on the right side, trying to get his head to the target. So he’s flying open, trying to create arm speed and all these things. When your front side flies open, it’s tough.”

The 32-year-old Kazmir said he has had the issue “for years.”

“A little stubborn,” he said “I’m like, ‘I can fight through and get it done.’ That’s just the competitor in me. But when you’re putting up numbers like that and leaving that much for the bullpen to do …”

Kazmir said “I fully intend to make my next start,” but acknowledged he will likely undergo an MRI and meet with the Dodgers’ medical staff when the team returns Tuesday to Los Angeles.

“Obviously where these games are so important, the bullpen has been taxed — we have to make those decisions that are best for the ballclub that day,” Roberts said. “Right now, we’re not thinking about the DL. We just want to get home and get our docs on him. But that is a decision. If he’s not going to be 100 percent, we have to make the decision that’s best for the ballclub.”

Notable

Outfielder Josh Reddick was scratched from Monday’s starting lineup due to a jammed middle finger on his right hand. The struggling Reddick is not likely to start Tuesday either against Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner. After popping out as a pinch-hitter Monday, Reddick is 10 for 67 (.149) without an RBI in 16 games since he was acquired by the Dodgers in a trade-deadline deal with the Oakland A’s. … Right-hander Ross Stripling joined the Dodgers in Cincinnati but has not been activated yet. The Dodgers are hedging their bets in case the blister on Brett Anderson’s index finger prevents him from making his scheduled start on Thursday against the Giants. Stripling was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday and can only be recalled to replace a player who goes on the DL. … The Dodgers’ first-round pick in 2015, right-hander Walker Buehler, will make his professional debut by pitching in an Arizona Summer League game Tuesday. Buehler had Tommy John surgery shortly after last year’s draft.

Bill Plunkett has covered everything from rodeo to Super Bowls to boxing (yeah, I was there the night Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield's ear off) during a career that started far too long ago to mention and eventually brought him to the OC some time last century (1999 actually). He has been covering Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register since 2003, spending time on both the Angels and Dodgers beats.